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Friday, February 8, 2013

Selling feminism for a living

Mullahs of all kinds have done it since time immemorial. Sell religion for their own petty gains. You have a property dispute, accuse your opponent of blasphemy. You want to become the Emperor of India, accuse Dara Shikoh of heresy... can't win electorally, declare a kafir-e-azam here, a kafiristan there. Maulana Maududi and Majlis-e-Ahrar did it unsuccessfully at first but then succeeded mightily after 1947. Such is the nature of power politics in religious societies.

Unfortunately some of our latter day secular minded Pakistanis have also deployed this tactic to their advantage. We are all aware of LUBP's persecution of liberal and secular activists. Well now we have a self styled "take back the tech Pakistan feminist collective" that has resorted to libel and slander of the worst kind. Basically everyone is fair game for this group, even people like me who have always been most respectful to women and who is known as someone who has never even said a single harassing word to a female co-worker. This is a reputation I cherish and since this "collective" has sullied this reputation by writing all kinds of hogwash, I have decided to take some of them to court.

I am and will always be a supporter of women's rights. Not only is it an ideological position but a matter of necessity. First and foremost however I stand for women's rights because I believe compartmentalizing humanity on the basis of biology is wrong. It is wrong when Mullahs do it. It is wrong when anyone else does it as well.

So let me state this again. Stop conflating your personal egos with the feminist collective. Stop selling feminism for your personal interests. Stop profiting from it. Take everything on merit. And get a life. All of you need it.

And if you are bothered by your social and material conditions so much take on those who actually pose a threat to feminism instead of using feminism as a stick to beat innocent parties with, to libel and slander individuals. People will cease to take you seriously. I know I have.